The Requirement
by Kyra62442
Summary: Set during their 5th year, Draco and Hermione are stuck in the Room of Requirement, and need to find a way out! Written by three authors: Goretardedlion *Draco's perspective*, Kyra62442 *Hermione's perspective*, and Laughing-Spirit13  *Ron's perspective*
1. Chivalry

_Summary: Draco and Hermione are in their 5__th__ year at Hogwarts, and Snape (the git) makes the two of them partners for a potions project. But when they're running from a potential detention they end up getting stuck in the Room of Requirement, and they don't know how to get out! _

_Written by 3 authors: __Goretardedlion (Draco's perspective), Kyra62442 (Hermione's perspective), and Laughing-Spirit13 (Ron's perspective)._

**THE REQUIREMENT**

"…_And you'll be with Miss Granger, Draco…"_

Why oh why did Professor Snape decide on that?

Draco Malfoy being paired with a mudblood was not the greatest thing in the world. Everybody knew that. Unless Snape had some secret desire to get Granger killed, (though Draco probably wouldn't mind it if she suddenly disappeared, as she was the only reason _he _wasn't the top of his class…) it was a terrible idea. They had absolutely no patience—for given reasons, of course. They were constantly at each other's necks for the constant need to bicker.

_On the other hand,_ Draco thought, _at least he wasn't paired with someone like Weasley, who was bound to be an idiot for the entire duration of the project._ Granger wanted to do well on the project, and that much was painfully obvious. But it was good for Draco, because they were a pair who could actually work together on a project, given that they would put aside the fact that they hated each other.

So when Hermione Granger (literally) grabbed him after their preceding potions class to schedule a time to research the project, or at least start the research together, he mildly surprised himself (and most likely Granger) when he complied without any fuss. They were to meet outside the Great Hall after dinner, then go to the library. Easy enough.

"Draco, Draco!" Brought him out of his thoughts.

"What, Crabbe"

"What day is today?" Crabbe asked stupidly.

Oh, how many times did he have to answer this blasted question?

"November 23rd," _for the billionth time._

"Oh. Okay."

"But I thought it was the 13th? It should be, since it's a Friday."

"No Goyle, you're 10 days off." _Idiot._

"But…" No buts, Mister. _Draco doesn't have the patience to deal with that right now. Not that he ever does._

They were sitting in their last class of the day, Transfiguration. McGonagall was going off about something regarding the importance of some-odd thing. Obviously, Draco wasn't paying too much attention. Which was strange for him, because not only was he the top boy (thanks to Granger, not top of the class), but also he secretly considered transfiguration his favorite subject. Regardless of the fact that he grew up in a magical family, he still was awed by the concept of turning one thing into another. No, it was not the fact that he couldn't grasp the idea (like some people), it was just never something he would tire of, like how he had always enjoyed flying ever since he rode his first broomstick when he was 5.

Anyways, back to the important things. Draco wasn't paying attention because there was something odd that had been gnawing away at his brain. It started when he easily cooperated with Granger earlier that day, and therefore he blamed it on her. He really had no idea what it might be, but either way, it was damn distracting.

"Draco, Draco!"

"What, Goyle?" Draco responded with an exasperated sigh.

"Class is over. Are you going to come to dinner?"

Class was over. Oh hey look, we were the only ones left in the classroom. Even McGonagall had left.

"Yeah, yeah. You go ahead, I'll be right behind you." Wait, was he being considerate of the fact that they always needed food?

"Oh, okay!" There they go, running as fast as they could with their fat bodies.

Draco frowned as he left the classroom and began to walk towards the Great Hall. He _was_ just being considerate. And not paying attention in Transfiguration. What was wrong with him?

He shook his head as he entered the Great Hall. He must be slightly off today. He'd go back to normal once he ate something, probably.

He dropped the internal subject and listened to the conversation surrounding his seat. He sat across from Crabbe and Goyle as usual, they were too large to sit in between. Pansy was chatting excitedly to the right of him, and Blaise sat on his left, ignoring everything in his surroundings. Typical.

"So, what are we doing after dinner? Go scare some more first years?" Goyle had asked the exact same question every dinner for the past four years. First year scaring and all. The only reason he hadn't said it their first year was because _they_ were first years.

"No Goyle, I have to work on my potions project with Granger." He didn't want to blow her off. Two years ago he found out that she had a mean right hook, and his dignity wouldn't allow him to hit her back.

"Oh. Was I supposed to work with my partner too?"

"Honestly, can't you keep track of your own schedule? Like I need to mommy you about when you should do your work. I bet your partner needs his mommy though." Goyle's partner was Weasel, and Draco would not doubt that the Weasel mommy still owled them every night to make sure they brushed their teeth.

"Uh, yeah." It's impressive how dumb the two of them were.

The rest of dinner passed by quite smoothly, Draco having to constantly tutor Crabbe and Goyle while they tried to sound smart making stupid comments. Soon enough, it was time for him to go play friends with Granger.

Draco stood up from the table. "Make sure you too don't forget the password to the common room again."

"Mgrh," was their cake-stuffed-faces reply.

Draco calmly scanned the room for Granger. He found her standing beside the Gryffindor table, behind a very red Weasley. (Merlin knows why his face was like that. It made him look like a tomato.) He watched as Granger slowly looked throughout the great hall, until she locked eyes with the one and only Draco Malfoy. When they broke the eye contact, he walked toward the entrance to the Great Hall, finding that Granger did the same.

They met there at the same time. "I need to return some books to the library, but I left them in my dorm. I'm going up to get them before I head to the library." Straight to the point, that girl was.

"That's fine, I'll go with you." Wait, what? Since when was Draco Malfoy chivalrous to mudbloods like Granger? Something was definitely wrong with him today. But, unfortunately, what was said had been said. So, he followed the bushy-haired girl all the way up to the 7th floor, thinking of nothing but how he really disliked Snape at the moment.

Draco waited outside the Gryffindor common room, waiting for Granger to return. Within the time of him waiting outside, he looked out a window, noting how dark the sky was. _How much time did they have until the library closed and after-hours began?_

It turned out Granger had the same idea when she returned 5 minutes later. "It's quite late, actually," she stated. _No kidding._

"And?"

"Well, we should probably hurry. The library should close in a few minutes," _and we're on the 7__th__ floor. Awesome. _"But Madam Pince likes me, so she probably won't mind. It's getting there and back that is the problem…" She faded off. The clocks chimed. 9 o'clock. They were officially breaking the rules. "We should hurry…" Yet she failed to move.

"Well then, if we're just going to stand here…" and with that, they began walking. Speed walking would probably be the proper term for it, and then running of course, when they heard a faint "Meow" behind them.

Draco and Granger took a quick moment to exchange worried glances before they heard footsteps coming towards them. That was the last thing they needed, particularly with Mrs. Norris on their tail. Their captor's shadow casted upon the wall opposite them. A tall figure with a pointed hat on their head moved swiftly in their direction. The whoosh of robes echoed through the corridor.

"McGonagall!" Granger whispered. _Bloody hell. _More footsteps. Faster, faster! _This isn't going to end well… _So what do they do? _Only the obvious. Hide._

So, Draco, being the hero, (as always) snatched Granger by the arm. "In here!" he hissed, and dragged her through the door to their left.

The door slammed shut just in time, and the two winded students stared at each other while they recovered from their adventure.

"That… Was way too close," Granger stated.

"We didn't even make it down the stairs before we got caught… Pathetic."

Granger made a "humph" kind of noise and turned around, and began taking in their surroundings. Draco ignored her and decided to do the same. When he did, he couldn't believe his eyes.


	2. You Can't Apparate on Hogwarts' Grounds!

Hermione let her eyes narrowly scan the room that she recently had been so rudely shoved into. It was about the size of a small bedroom, chilly and dim, the room was decorated with dark tapestries that hung over the stone walls, and two marble statues that Draco seemed to be investigating franticly. A table and chair stood next to the larger of the two statues and looked as if it hadn't been sat in for quite some time. Not dirty, just not broken in.

A soft patting noise brought Hermione's attention back to Malfoy and the statues, why would he look so frantic all of a sudden?

"Eh hem," she coughed, trying to diverge his attention from the strange statues, "But where have you taken me Draco Malfoy?" Hermione finished her question with a huff of her chest and very purposely (and forcefully) placed hands on her hips.

Malfoy looked up and scowled, "I thought I took us into the Room of Requirement, but it seems as if we're, well, someplace else."

"_Someplace else?"_

"Yes, _someplace else_," Malfoy snapped.

_Someplace else!_ Malfoy had been rude to her in the past, but purposefully hiding information from her when they were in a dire situation was too much, and Hermione was not a girl to withhold information from.

"Well if you refuse to tell me where I am, you should at least tell me what you are doing with those statues!"

When he gave no reply, Hermione decided that there was no longer a need to stay in the blasted room any longer and turned to leave.

But the door was no longer there.

Panicked, Hermione began to feverishly search not only the wall directly behind her, but also, all four walls of the room for the missing door, but the closest she came was the swinging doors of the closet.

_Where is it? Where is it? There's no door! Why is there no door?_

This went on for several more minutes by the time Draco had actually noticed the bushy haired girl's hysteric search,

"What are you doing Granger?"

"Looking for a door!" she screamed. "Because apparently **you've** brought me into a room without one!"

Malfoy's grey eyes went wide for a second, and then back to their original state. Looking calm, relaxed, and even amused he retorted, "Very funny Granger, but how would you explain the fact that we got **in** through a door, meaning that there has to be a door, or at least an opening, to get **out**?"

"Well if you're so cleaver why don't you find the door then!"

"I'm busy."

"WITH WHAT?" Hermione screeched, "WHAT COULD YOU POSSIBLY BE BUSSY WITH?"

Malfoy shrugged, and returned to his search on the statues. Hermione watched him for a few minutes, trying to figure out what the blond could be searching for. What could be so important about the statues? And did Malfoy know where they were? He certainly seemed too comfortable to **not** know. _Maybe if I try being "nice to him" he'll give me some answers,_ Hermione reasoned.

"May I inquire as to what-you-are-doing?" As hard as she tried, the end of the question still came out a little too bitter sounding for her tastes. She had to _be nice_.

"Nothing," But Hermione's nice-plan seemed to have worked because instead of Malfoy responding in a gruff, and annoyed manner, he sounded rather exasperated and solemn. He looked tired and incredibly lost in thought.

"Draco," Hermione said smoothly, in which he jumped slightly as being referred to by his first name, "do you know where we are?"

He nodded, and Hermione sat down next to the smaller statue, and after a few seconds, Draco followed suit. _I'll wait for him to talk first, he'll spill everything soon enough_. This was the tactic that she used mostly on Ronald, who typically required **a lot** of patience. For some reason guys just didn't want to confess that they had problems in their life, some stupid notion about looking perfect, or impressing girls, but it certainly wasn't practical, and unfortunately, with Ron, Hermione had a lot of experience with unpractical things. But after a good ten minutes Hermione could no longer stand the silence.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

At this Malfoy got suddenly angry, and snapped up from the floor and angrily explaining, "Talk about it. Talk, about it? What, are we on some silly girl show where we say what's wrong with our seemingly fluffy lives? I DON'T NEED TO TALK ABOUT IT," he suddenly bellowed.

The brown-eyed girl jumped violently at the sudden outburst from Draco, but it didn't stop there, he continued,

"DO YOU HAVE TO KNOW EVERYTHING ABOUT EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE? LITTLE MISS "O" GRADES CAN NEVER BE SATISFIED CAN SHE? YOU ALWAYS HAVE TO OUTSMART EVERYONE DON'T YOU?" At this point Draco was breathing hard and looking vivid. Clearly he'd wanted to say this for a while now. _He's annoyed that I'm better than him in class_, this for some reason amused Hermione, but she was more concerned about his obvious discomfort with the room that they were in.

Malfoy sank in the unused chair and started rubbing his temple with his fingers, the silence that hung between the two lasted for more than a minute, and Hermione shifted uncomfortably on the floor, unsure as to what to do next. Clearly he had something against opening up, but she needed him to. She needed to find out where they were, and why he was acting so strangely. _Maybe he is right; maybe I can't ever be satisfied._

Therefore, it surprised her when Draco suddenly started talking, and even more when he started to apologize.

"I'm sorry, even though _you are_ the equivalent of the dirt on the bottom of my shoe, I shouldn't have snapped at you like that."

But all poor Hermione could was to sit there stunned. Seeming to realize that she wasn't going to say anything, yet, Malfoy continued, "It was impolite and I should have just told you were we are, or at least, where I think we are, from the beginning." He took a deep breath and waited for her to reply but she still didn't make a sound.

"I… I used to… I used to hide in this room when I was a boy."

Hermione finally found her voice, "Wh-What do you mean? Why would you be hiding here as a boy?"

"This room is in my house." _Think again Malfoy; we can't be in your house, because it's impossible to apparate or disapparate on Hogwarts' grounds._

"Nonsense, we **can't** be in your house, we got here through the 7th floor."

"I know that. It is also impossible because there are certain enchantments that would prevent you from entering anyways."

"Humph."

"When we were running, I thought this was going to be the Room of Requirement, but somehow, we landed up at my hiding place."

"What were you hiding from?" _Merlin! I shouldn't have asked that!_

"It wasn't just me who was hiding here, my mother would too-"

"Why would you and your mother need to hide in your own house?" _I really need to shut my mouth; I'm beginning to sound rude…_

"My mother put and charmed these two statues in here for the two of us to hide in. You have to press your hand to the forehead of the statue, say "aperire", and they would open up in the back revealing a room the size of a broom cupboard. We would sit in them when my father got mad or drunk. Or both."

_He actually told me all of that! But hiding from his own father, how horrible! I can't even imagine how tough that would be, even Narcissa had to escape her husband! "Dirt on the bottom of my shoe," humph, well it didn't seem that he regarded me that way when he was saying how __**I**__was better than__** him **__in class…_

"But enough about that, we need to find the blasted door," and with that, he got up, and started to inspect the walls of the room, leaving Hermione completely, and totally, confused.


	3. What They Wanted

_Where the bloody hell could she be? _ Ronald Weasley thought as he stabbed his eggs viciously. The last time he saw Hermione was the night before at dinner. How could he forget, they had quite a heated conversation:

_"-but why do you have to go with Malfoy?" Ron complained_

_"-Since when did I get to chose who Snape paired us with? It's not like I want to be paired with the Muggle-born hating thing. Besides, it's not like we are spending free time together. And since when did you start caring?" Hermione asked pointedly. _

_"-I don't care who you spend your time with, as long as it isn't that prat!" Ron spat back._

_"-I can hang out with whomever I choose, Ronald! And if you are really so obviously jealous of Malfoy getting to be alone with me, well then, maybe you should have done something about it!" Hermione snapped right before stomping out of the Great Hall. _

And he didn't see her the rest of the night. Plus she was with _Draco Malfoy. _Of all the gits she could have broke curfew with, why'd it have to be that one?

"Ron, are you alright?" Harry's voice broke into the ginger's angry thoughts.

"Oh, ya, just peaches and cream over here," Ron mumbled darkly into his scrambled eggs. He hardly touched breakfast, a first for him.

"Your worried about Hermione too?" Harry asked. Ron didn't realize until that moment that Harry actually noticed Hermione's disappearance. Ron tended to do that, treat Harry like he had a famous thinking mind. That never turned out well in the end, always ended in fights. Like last year at the Triwizard Cup. It took a whole dragon battle to make Ron remember that Harry wasn't the type of guy to go fame hunting. Especially when it came to putting his name in a competition so dangerous.

"Ya. Where could she have gone?" Ron responded a little less poisonously to his best friend.

"I was thinking she could have skipped breakfast to study for the O.W.L.s, you know with them coming up," Ron noticed Harry too hardly eaten, but that wasn't as unusual.

"They're not till spring. It's November. How could anyone study for them _this _early?"

"Well, you know Hermione. Remember how extreme she gets when _normal _exams are coming up? I'd be surprised if she didn't start studying at the end of last year!" Harry chuckled slightly and Ron couldn't help but join in. Oh Hermione…

"Tell you what, if she doesn't show up for morning Charms lessons, we'll take a break and try to find her on the Map," Harry whispered as students started to shuffle out of the Great Hall. The ceiling was overcast today with formidable clouds. Really set the mood for a crummy day, thought Ron.

Hermione, as it turned out, was not there for the first class of the day, and this did not go unnoticed. It's not everyday Flitwick's top student doesn't show. So, as Harry said, right before double Transfiguration, the two 5th years sprinted back up to the Gryffindor common room, bolted up to Harry's trunk, and practically set a bomb of clothing off trying to find that Map. Of course it was at the very bottom.

"Murphy's Law," Harry mumbled to himself as he got his wand out to perform the incantation. Ron just shook his head, muggles and their silly sayings.

"Okay, look for Hermione," Harry spread the Marauder's Map over the red comforter of his four-poster bed. The two boys searched for the bushy haired friend and were well aware that McGonagall was probably ready to eat them alive for their tardiness. But they couldn't find Hermione anywhere!

"It is like she completely vanished!" Ron pouted as he threw himself down on the bed.

"But that isn't possible unless she left Hogwarts all together," Harry was still studying the Marauder's Map with much more focus then Ronald could ever posses.

"You don't think Hermione would sneak off of campus?" Ron looked up at his best friend with a newfound concern.

"Ron, this is Hermione were talking about. They only way she would be off campus without permission is if she was kidnapped by Voldemort himself," Harry told Ron, only half kidding. As predicted, Ron flinched at the use of You Know Who's name, but he let it slide this time.

"You don't think He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named really-" Ron started

"Think about what you are saying before you finish that thought," Harry interrupted the worried ginger, "If Voldemort-" Ron flinched "-really came to Hogwarts, why would he steal Hermione? Why wouldn't he just come after me if he were already here? And anyway, he is in hiding remember? He wouldn't want to blow his cover," Harry finished. And he was right, of course.

"We should go tell McGonagall!" Ron was struck with the idea to tell their head of house. She would know what to do, for sure.

"And say what? 'Excuse me, Professor McGonagall? Back in my third year the twins gave me this map that shows the movement of everyone inside Hogwarts, and we can't seem to find Hermione on it. Do you think you could look it over?'" Harry asked pointedly.

"Well we don't have to phrase it like that!" Ron snapped back. "We should just tell her that we've noticed Hermione has been gone since last night, and we were worried."

Harry stared down at his father's old map on last time before tapping it with his wand and muttering, "mischief managed." He grabbed his school bag and headed out the boys dormitory with Ron close on his heals.

"Do you have any idea how late you are?" Minerva McGonagall whispered as the two 5th years walked into her Transfiguration class. Harry looked down at his watch (wind up of course, batteries didn't work in Hogwarts) and moaned. Ron peeked at it over his shoulder and let a similar noise escape. They were so caught up in their search they hadn't realized it.

45 minutes late. For McGonagall's class!

"How dare you even come to class? If you really cared about your studies, you would show up on time. A little late if you have a valid excuse. But under no circumstances do you show up to class 45 minutes late. Either you come or if you obviously don't care, you don't come," McGonagall's voice was in a deadly whisper. But no matter how quiet she became Ron and Harry could hear her perfectly, the class went silent as her rage drifted through the room.

The rest of the class, who were suppose to be transfiguring snails into coat buttons, instantly forgot of the project. It was always entertaining to see two children in trouble. Harry and Ron were no excuse despite the fact they were being lectured by their own head of house. On the contrary, that just made it more exciting.

"But Professor-"

"NO EXCUSES MR. WEASLY! Alright," McGonagall took a deep breath in to calm herself. Ron never seen her lips any tighter, it was like they weren't even there, "Mr. Weasly, Mr. Potter, you two may go sit in my office and wait there until I am ready to deal with you," Professor McGonagall gestured to the office door. Normally the boys would protest, but after a display like that they did not need to be told twice.

As they passed down to the front of the class where the office stood a few Ravenclaws, who they had Transfiguration with, laughed at the foolish Gryffindors. Neville cast the two a sympathetic glance and Seamus gave Ron (he was still mad at Harry) an encouraging nod.

It seemed like a good hour before Professor McGonagall slammed her office door shut as she entered.

"Now," McGonagall said just as Ron opened his mouth, "I don't want to hear anything about how a Slytherin caused this," oh, she knew the Gryffindors far too well.

"Actually, it was another Gryffindor that caused this," Harry grumbled to his knees. Ron shot him a look that plainly said _unbelievable. _

"Professor, we noticed Hermione wasn't at breakfast or in the common room last night," Ron started, but very quickly for fear that McGonagall would cut him off, "And then she didn't come to charms this morning, which is what really got us thinking something was wrong." McGonagall nodded her head in agreement. If it was Hermione, then not in class was the best red flag there was, "So we decided to uh…investigate a little. And we lost track of time," Ron looked at Harry quickly, hoping he didn't give up too much information.

But McGonagall didn't seem to notice Ron's hesitation to telling her exactly _how _they investigated. Instead, she took off her square framed glasses, wiped them on some cloth, readjusted them onto her face, and looked at Ron square in the eyes. Ron will never forget how frightened he was at that moment, it was almost as bad as the Whomping Willow incident…but not nearly as horrifying as Aragog.

"Now, even though it was very valiant of you two to go try and locate Miss Granger, tardiness, especially at this level, will not be tolerated in this classroom. If you were really very concerned for Miss Granger, you would have come to me directly," McGonagall's voice was trembling with pent-up rage. She had to deal with a lot of stuff, namely Fred and George, so Ron had to remind himself that McGonagall might just be overacting a tad bit, especially if she was involved with the twins earlier on.

"Well, Professor, we just figured you would be as in the dark as we were, so…there was really no point in coming to you if we were going to be trying to find her anyway," Harry said innocently. Ron mentally gave himself a face palm. There was a fine line between bravery and stupidity, and with Harry that line was practically invisible.

McGonagall's lips tightened even more if that was possible, "As a matter of fact, Mr. Potter, seeing as I am a teacher I do have quite a bit more information then you do."

Harry opened his mouth to speak right as a slam of a door echoed through McGonagall's office followed by an irritated "Mr. Potter!"

_Out of everyone who could have come through that door, it had to be this prat, _Ron sighed mentally as Snape marched to the side of the desk. His hair always fascinated Ron, it was almost as if he didn't wash it on purpose…

"Mr. Potter and Mr. Weasley. I thought I'd find the two of you here, cowering under your Head of House," Snape sneered at Harry and Ron who immediately put on innocent expressions. They haven't even done anything wrong, yet with Snape it was just habit to look absolutely innocent to anything that could have possibly gone on.

"Eh-um," McGonagall coughed, "Severus I think you might want to fill me in on why these two need to cower under their Head of House."

"Oh, so you're lying to you Head of House? Well, I figured out your little scheme. Tell me, at this moment where is Draco Malfoy?" Snape smiled in victory at the surprised looks on Ron and Harry's face. He felt his victory grow and power him, "That's right. Draco's gone missing and the only two with a motive was you! So what did you do to him?"

Harry was the first to speak, as he was always trying to humiliate Snape _legally, _and how could anyone pass up this opportunity?

"Sorry to disappoint Professor, but Ron and I haven't seen Draco since last night in the Great Hall. And if we have done something there, I think the observant teachers would have noticed," Harry gave a slight smile of his own.

"Yeah, and I'm pretty sure every house besides Slytherin had a motive to get rid of Malfoy," Ron added. Snape gave him a stare that could make a mandrake become silent with fear. Ron pushed back as far into the seat as possible.

"And, may I ask Severus, on what grounds are you accusing these Gryffindors of this crime?" McGonagall was seated more rigid then a cat. For now she had a job more important then punishing her Gryffindors, now she had to protect them from the snakes.

"On the grounds that he went disappearing last night. And earlier that day I partnered him and Granger together for an assignment. These two must have got rid of him so she wouldn't have to work with him. Am I wrong?" Snape pointed at Harry. But Harry was unnerved; he seemed to be the only student who could stand that venomous glare given by those black eyes.

"Yes sir, you are. Hermione went disappearing as well. That's why we're here," Harry replied coolly.

"You know, now that I think about it, wasn't Hermione leaving to go study with Malfoy?" Ron thought out loud. Then he smacked himself right on the forehead, "Yeah, she was! How could I forget, we got in a huge fight about it right before she left!" _How could I forget that? Stupid, stupid, stupid! _Ron scoffed at himself.

"And you're sure she did not return to the common room last night?" McGonagall's voice was softer then it was a minute ago. Whether is was because Snape was now here or because they finally found a lead, Ron didn't know. Honestly, he didn't care. McGonagall was scary when she was mad, absolutely horrifying. Almost like spiders.

"Yeah, we stayed up pretty late waiting. What time was it when we turned in?" Harry turned to Ron.

"Um, about 2:00 I think" Ron thought carefully. He was messing with a time telling spell at the time, so he was pretty sure. Of course he could have always cast the spell wrong. It was actually quite probable.

"I think I know where our missing students have vanished to," McGonagall seemed…scared. Why was she scared?

"Where?" Snape turned on his co-worker with a billow in his cape.

"It depends on what they wanted when they entered," McGonagall said gravely.

Ron and Harry let out a simultaneous "Bloody Hell."


	4. Shoelaces

_There's got to be a door, _Draco thought, _there's no physical way there isn't be a door._

Draco paced back and forth against the wall he and Granger had entered through. But, at the sake of all his logic, the door in question was nowhere to be seen.

Granger still sat on the floor by the statues opposite him. There was a spacey feel about her as she looked down and fiddled with her shoelaces. Draco figured she was probably thinking about something. He was slightly bothered by the fact that she was just sitting there thinking, of all things, and not helping him look for the door. But the hope for a streak of genius from the bushy-haired girl kept Draco from telling her off.

Meanwhile, Draco had just about given up on finding the door. All 5 of his senses, (not that you can smell or taste a door, though he had tried smelling it just out of desperation, but he wasn't about to lower himself to licking the wall) told him that there probably hadn't been a door present to being with.

As logic battled reality, Draco turned his attention back to the room he was in. It was his room all right, he wondered if the enchantments his mother put on the statues still worked. Grimly pushing away the image of the filthy little girl sitting on the floor, and how she was probably contaminating his safe room, he began to wonder just how they had gotten here. He had worked out that they were in the Room of Requirement, that had been simple for him. He had been here often out of late. What he didn't understand was why they had been brought here, of all places.

Draco's mind switched to automatic. _Basics, _he thought. _The Room of Requirement… _What did he know about the Room of Requirement? _It follows your thoughts when you enter. It gives you what you want… _What had he wanted when he entered? _To escape from McGonagall. A safe place. _He had gotten that all right. But a safe place! The room had gone to the most basic definition of "safe place" that existed in Draco's mind. _But Granger must have wanted something too… _But what? They had been running away from McGonagall and Mrs. Norris. She had probably wanted to get away from that particular corridor as much as he had. He had made the decision to hide, so her instinct was most likely somewhere along the lines of trusting and following him.

He looked back down at Granger, only to find that she had moved in the time of Draco's internal monologue. The girl was now aimlessly meandering throughout the room, seemingly lost in thought. Draco let himself watch her for a bit, but stopped when he found himself wondering what she was thinking.

Suddenly, like a just-freed bludger, Granger let out a triumphant cry, halting just before the wall. Her head whipped from left to right, stopping when she found Draco. He had opened his mouth the question her actions (rudely, of course) but was immediately cut off by a long stream of words:

"The Room, it knew we wanted to hide. You pulled me into the room so it must have made your thoughts more influential than mine. But it still followed the idea we both had: to hide. The door probably disappeared because we didn't want to be found. If the door was still there, anybody could walk in. Or so our subconscious most likely thinks. I'm supposing it's still not there because there's a possibility that McGonagall or Mrs. Norris is out there waiting for us. The problem is, that's always a possibility."

Draco realized she had put together a tad bit more than he had, but he still had been listening to her words with little interest. "Glad you figured that out, Granger," he called out smugly. "But that knowledge is going to help us how, exactly?" He skillfully left out the fact that if Granger hadn't said it first, he gladly would have said something and taken the credit for the discovery himself.

"Well," she snapped, "I figured it might be nice to know how we got here." My, she was a feisty girl. "And possibly helpful, too, in figuring out how to get out of here." She added after a moment.

Draco thought it over. "Well," he sighed, "it's better than nothing." It was odd for him not to have something snippy to say. He slid down the wall and sat down opposite the statues. After a moment, Granger followed suit.

Silence ensued. It had been a long while until Granger piped up:

"But… Do you have any idea how we're going to get out of the room?" Granger admitting she didn't know something? Not directly, of course.

Draco couldn't help but notice that she looked nervous. He would never admit it out loud, but he couldn't find the courage to not blame her.

"I hate to admit it, but honestly," he paused, his eyes trailing the edges of the statues opposite them. "I haven't the slightest idea."


	5. I Would Kill to Look This Good Forever

It was rare that two top students both lacked answers, explanations, and ideas. Neither of the two were comfortable with the fact that a solution wasn't found yet, and therefore there was tension in the room like a rubber band pulled all the way back. _"I haven't the slightest idea." And what does he do after that? He stays seated, and waits as if I'll just come up with the answer myself! I don't know what to do either! It's like he doesn't care, or he does, but just doesn't want to strain himself too much by thinking of ways to escape._

Draco and Hermione started to fire ideas to each other. Some of the ideas were reasonable, some were wistful, and a few of them were just annoying and only suggested by Draco so he could purposefully tick Hermione off.

"We could try to see if there's a concealment charm."

"It could be behind the tapestries."

"Maybe if we tried to open the statues?"

"How about we just start yelling and see if anyone hears us?"

But no matter what they thought of, nothing worked.

As they thought about their plans for getting out of the room, Hermione started to fiddle with her necklace, and then her watch.

"Merlin!"

"What?" said a very surprised Draco, who clearly did not expect the outburst from Hermione.

"_Do-you-realize-what-time-and-day-it-is_?"

"Uh, no, but it shouldn't be anything later than 2 in the morning, we got in here pretty late but it's not like we've been in here **that** long."

"It's November 24th, and it's well past 6 o'clock!"

"In the morning?"

"No! In the evening!"

The silence lasted as long as it took for the message to sink in. They'd been in the room for close to 24 hours, yet it seemed as if it hadn't been more than five since they got there. It was bad enough that they were stuck in the stupid room, but time seemed to have disappeared from them. _How might that have happened?_

"Does this mean that we don't age?" said Draco smugly, "Because I would kill to look this good forever."

This caused the rubber band of tension to slap Draco across the face.

"WE ARE TRAPPED IN A ROOM WITHOUT ANY MEANS OF GETTING OUT, AND A LACK OF AWARENESS FOR TIME, AND ALL YOU CAN THINK ABOUT IS HOW GOOD YOU LOOK?"

"Pretty much."

But this was the wrong answer for Draco to choose because all it did was add more red to his slightly stinging face. Hermione's hand withdrew and she looked momentarily shocked, then angry again. Apparently she couldn't stay sympathetic for Malfoy **that** long.

Outraged at being slapped in the face **twice** by Hermione, Draco started to charge at her, and with a jump, she started screaming.

"AHHHHHH!" Hermione bolted to the other side of the room with Malfoy on her heel.

"YOU'RE GOING TO PAY FOR THAT YOU LITTLE MOODBLOOD!"

The chase continued and Hermione leaped over the chair as Draco followed close behind. They were circling each other around the larger statue now, Draco like a hunting bird, and Hermione like a scared creature, praying that it would see another day.

"HOW DARE YOU SLAP ME?"

"HOW DARE YOU CALL ME DISCRIMITIVE NAMES? ARE YOU A FIRST YEAR OR WHAT?"

"I JUST SAY IT HOW IT IS, BUT WHAT YOU DID WAS UNCALLED FOR."

At this Hermione gave a war cry and lunged at Malfoy, desperately trying to claw away her enemy of the past four years.

But at that moment, a silver light flashed, breaking the two apart in surprise, and revealed a cat patronus.

"Miss Granger, and Mr. Malfoy, if you get this message, please respond to me as quickly as possible," said the cat in McGonagall's voice.

"It's McGonagall! She knows that we're stuck in here! She can help us get out!" Hermione's attitude suddenly changed from angry to excited_. I'm going to get out of here and I'll never have to see Malfoy again!_ This thought made her so delighted that she got off the floor and stopped trying to rip Malfoy's hair out.

"One problem Granger, how are we supposed to communicate with her? We can't just write her a letter," Malfoy said sarcastically.

"Well, I suppose we'll have to send a patronus back."

"Get at it then! Stop wasting my time and send a message back!" Malfoy was far beyond irritated, Hermione had just tried to tear him to pieces, and suddenly, she was acting all cheery.

"I-I ca-I can't." Her good attitude diminished and all that was left was a look that matched a puppy when it's been discovered for eating up several shoes.

"What do you mean you can't? _You're the smartest witch of our age!_ You should know **everything**!"

"I-I'm flattered that you think I know everything, but I've never been able to master a patronus, Harry is the only one who has accomplished it."

Draco stood glaring at Hermione for a moment, as if daring her to say something else, which she did, "I know that you'd like this moment to gloat, so go ahead, conjure a patronus, make it fly back to McGonagall with a plea to get us out, while accusing me of getting into this mess."

After a long pause, and a deep breath from Draco, he finally said, "I can't make one either."

_Shit._


	6. Date a Slytherin

Ronald Weasley and Harry Potter were excused from classes the rest of the day, to Snape's dismay. But to all his protests, McGonagall would just respond "Well Severus, it's either they come with us now or they break curfew later. Which do you prefer?" Ron thought Snape would have preferred breaking curfew, at least then he could put the two Gryffindors in detention. But no such luck while McGonagall was around.

"So, how can you be certain they are there?" Snape said in a slimy voice as the four waited for a staircase to face the right direction.

"Last night while on patrol I saw a robe go in that direction, but when I turned the corner they were gone. Where else could they have gone?" McGonagall started marching up the staircase. Half way through it started turning back in the wrong direction (this staircase had a reputation of going the wrong way if you stepped on it too roughly) but McGonagall just slapped the railing and said "You're not going to do this to me today!" The stairs instantly went back on course.

_Not Even inanimate objects disobey McGonagall, _Ron thought to himself. He couldn't say which he felt more, a greater sense of respect or a greater sense of fear.

"Did you ever think that they just went down the other side of the corridor?" Snape asked, trying to poke holes in her theory. Ron actually sympathized with him on this. He resented it. But if Hermione was really was in the Room of Requirement it would be near impossible to get her out.

"No Severus, I actually haven't thought they could have turned around," McGonagall said sarcastically. Ron could practically hear her eyes rolling, "Of course I thought that was a possibility! But Mrs. Norris was on the other end of the hall. And no student in their right mind would face Mrs. Norris head on."

Both Harry and Ron could agree with that. No one, not even Fred and George, would face that demon cat. It was probably the most feared and equally most hated thing in this school.

Well, until Umbridge showed up.

Finally they reached the 7th floor corridor. It took pulling Ron out of a fake step as he tripped on the back of Snape's cloaks, and passing a joyful Peeves who was pelting the group with chalk, but they finally made it.

"Now what?" Harry asked it, but it was on everyone's mind. What to do?

"Can we…ask for them?" Ron threw the idea out. McGonagall didn't appear to notice, but Snape certainly did.

"No Mr. Weasley. The Room of Requirement wants specifics. If you don't know exactly what you want then it will give you nothing. If you can get that through your abnormally thick skull of yours, maybe we can get somewhere," Snape said in his most professional you-are-an-idiot voice. It was quite a voice, but it did get a lot of practice.

"It was just an idea," the ginger mumbled to his feet.

"We'll have to send them a message," Minerva said suddenly but in a most certain way.

"And, if I may pry Professor, how do you intend on doing that?" Snape's slimy voice asked. He sounded like he wanted to kill everyone right on the spot for their blatant stupidity.

Ron and Harry had no doubt he would have either, if McGonagall didn't explain herself.

"Think about it Severus. Surely a smart man like you can figure it out!" McGonagall almost laughed at the confused look on the Slytherin's face. Almost.

She left Snape to boil in his own frustration at the world and walked over to the wall where a door would appear for those who asked for it.

With a sharp flick of her wand and a smile on her face silver mist sprouted out and formed into the silver wispy form of a full patronus.

"Find Ms. Granger and Mr. Malfoy, give them the message," McGonagall stated plainly.

The three others watched as the silver tabby cat bounced away and right into the wall. Instead of crashing like a normal cat the silver tabby floated ever so gracefully through the solid bricks and onto the other side.

What was waiting on the other side no one could be sure, though all had their guesses.

"How long will it take to find them?" Harry asked, still gaping at the wall where a cat once stood.

"Depends on how deep they are. My patronus could wander for a while before coming to the right room."

"But Professor, isn't there just one room?" Ron asked. That's how he always thought of it, just one room that shape shifted. Like an inanimate animagus.

"No one really knows. It is impossible to get in while others are inside unless you have the same desire, and the certainly implies there is only one room. But how can we really be sure? Also, there may be enchantments on the room those two managed to get trapped in," McGonagall sighed, turned on her heal, and peered over her square glass frames with a disciplinary glare students knew so well. "This does not, however, excuse you two from being so late to class!"

Harry and Ron sighed. Of course she remembered.

"Detention, both of you, tomorrow. You will be accompanying me on the search for the missing students. Dinner, and then right to my office," And before giving any further explanation, Professor McGonagall marched down the halls and back to her waiting transfiguration students.

Snape turned and stared at the boys with toxic eyes of a true snake, "Well, since you are excused from classes, I'll give you both the homework assignment now. 4 1/2 foot essay on the properties of lavender, the potions it is in, and a detailed description on how it acts in each potion. Due Friday," and with a flush of billowing cloaks Snape was gone.

"That git!" Ron turned and kicked the brick wall.

"Now we really have to find Hermione," Harry started pacing down the corridor and to the Fat Lady. Ron slowly limped behind him.

"Why is that?" Ron asked. Harry mumbled the password ("Mandrake Roots") and instantly slumped into the worn sofa in front of the fire pit.

"How do you expect us to write that much on lavender and pass without Hermione here to help?" Harry threw down his bags and pulled out parchment and a quill.

Ron, nursing an injured foot, groaned in realization. Snape knew they wouldn't be passing this without their best friend.

His personal revenge was set in motion. And all the Gryffindors could do was wait and worry about the fate of their bushy hair friend.

At lest they had classes of the rest of the day. Harry and Ron didn't even break for lunch. Why they were so invested in this essay Snape gave them, not even they knew. Never before have they bothered. He didn't deserve quality work from them, as Ron liked to think.

But this was different. This was a challenge, could these two numskulls actually pass without Hermione's guidance. And with nothing else to do until tomorrow, why not own up to that challenge?

Yet, despite running back and forth between the library and the common room, the hours of endless research, and the endless devotion to their work, the boys could just not get the amount of length they needed.

"Look at this! I've written everything I could as I big as I could get away with, and I still have a foot and a half to go!" Ron complained as he measured out a very long essay indeed.

"Snape knows it's impossible to write this much on one stupid ingredient!" Harry threw is quill down onto the table. He too lacked a sufficient amount of this essay.

People were already starting to filter in to the common room. Exhausted students who wanted to drop off their bags or take a quick cat-nap before dinner. Or cause havoc.

"And how are the under class men today?" Fred said as he plopped down next to Harry.

"Shove off," Ron growled as George sat on the other side of Harry.

"Oh, not very friendly, are we? So, Hermione reject you today?" George patted Ron's knee in fake concern. Ron threw a bottle of ink at his face. But George ducked on time and instead the bottle went flying out of an open window.

"Oh Ron, Hagrid's gonna make you pay for that," Fred clicked his tongue and George shook his head disappointedly.

"It's not my fault! You ducked!" Ron shouted in furious protests.

"Now he's putting the blame on others!"

"You think we would have had a better brother,"

"We tried to be good role models,"

"We thought there was hope yet when he became a Gryffindor,"

"But alas, our efforts were in vain," the twins finished. Both smiled identical evil grins as Ron flushed.

"Speaking of Hermione," Fred said suddenly, "Where is our little know-it-all?"

"Ya, that one prefect that actually does something about our crazy shenanigans?" George looked around the common room as if he expected to see her spying from somewhere.

Harry and Ron let a glance pass between them. McGonagall sent them a message a little while ago.

Don't tell anyone. That was all it said. But like they needed an explanation. So what do they tell people?

"Uh…she felt bad, so she wanted to go get some rest. You know, she can't be sick for classes- and…you know stuff like that," Ron struggled to find the right words as Harry shot him glances of encouragement.

But George and Fred, the best liars in the whole school that weren't Slytherins, called him out right away.

"No way! Not while you two are sitting here working! Hermione would never miss an opportunity to get something done with you guys!" Fred pointed at the essays that were still at least a foot too short.

"So where is she really?" George whispered, "Out on a romantic date? Perhaps with a certain not-so-romantic Slytherin?" George raised his eyebrows as Ron tripped over his words and, if possible, blushed even more then before. So it was Harry who did the talking this time.

"No, she just wanted to get some rest. Is that too hard to believe?" Apparently it was. Both twins squinted and Harry had two pairs of identical blue eyes studying him. It was kind of unnerving.

"You can deny it all you want-"

"But we shall get to the bottom of this-"

"And when we do-"

"You will be sorry," And with that the twins left their brother and his best friend and headed down to dinner, heads bent in muffled conversation.

Ron watched his brothers' retreating backs and let out a long sigh of relief. McGonagall would have transfigured him into a dung beetle if those two found out.

But if the twins find out on their own, and they learn that Ron was hiding information that Hermione was locked in a room…with Draco Malfoy! It would be the end of his world.

Now Ronald Weasley was unsure what to fear most.


	7. Happy Thoughts

Draco, as much as he loathed to admit it (not that he ever would), was rather shocked.

Hermione Granger didn't know how to make a patronus? Who would have ever thought that the brightest witch of their age didn't know something that the nutshell Potter did? Being absolutely honest, anyone who had seen Potter in potions class would admit that his streak of wins was more out of sheer luck and good timing than anything else.

Regardless, this was not the most prominent thought wandering around Draco's mind at the moment. No, it was not that 1) he was rather annoyed that it was McGonagall coming to fetch the two of them out of the room, and that his own head of house had so far showed not even a bit of concern, or 2) that Granger had considered his exclamation of how she was the smartest witch of their age flattery and not the downright truth, or 3) his slight amusement in the fact that McGonagall's patronus was a cat.

No, it was none of these things. Instead, it was the one that probably (hopefully) anyone in his or her right mind would be most bothered by. Yes, this was it, reverberating between his ears: _neither of us know how to make a patronus, and at the moment that's out only means of getting out. _Only a tad bit of a problem. Obviously, the fact that they might not be able to send a message in return had not crossed the Professor's mind.

Draco let his eyes scan the room. Unfortunately, the possibility of simply sending the silver cat back to her owner with a new message was long gone, as the cat had become a wisp of silvery light the moment McGonagall's voice had finished. Draco's eyes eventually settled on a small gathering of books on the ground by the Door Wall, as he had come to refer to it. Granger must have dropped them when they had sprawled into the room.

_Wait, _Draco's mind jerked to a halt. _What kind of books?_

Over there in a flash, he picked up the first book he could lay his hands on. _Defence Against the Dark Arts: The Basics for Beginners. _Maybe? But patronuses were highly advanced magic. Not for Beginners.

Next book: _The Past of Fighting the Dark. _Very Granger-like, searching the history of Defence Against the Dark Arts. _No use for this. _

Again: _The Complete Guide to the Dark Arts and Their Defences. _Complete guide? Sounds more promising than Professor Binns' take on the topic. Might as well take a look.

Table of Contents: Nothing there. Index: P…Pa…Pat…_Patronuses—page 392_

Score!

Malfoy let out a small whoop, his mind vaguely registering that he had spooked Granger quite well out of her skin.

Page 392 didn't have nearly as much writing on it as one would imagine for such an advanced technique. Quickly absorbing the information, Draco read: _Patronuses are highly advanced magic, used as a defence against Dementors, the guardians of the wizard prison of Azkaban. The patronus is casted with a focus around the feeling of happiness, which makes it very difficult to perform in the face of a dementor. A simple incantation of _Expecto Patronum, _while focusing on a happy memory will result in a silver figure of an animal to come from the tip of the wand. _

Exactly what he needed. But before Draco could blink, he had been unceremoniously knocked back to the floor. He slightly registered the fact that a high-pitched, ecstatic voice was talking at a speed barely comprehendible.

"Books, the books! Oh, why didn't I think of these before! I checked them out for DA, there's got to be something about patronuses in here!" The voice continued on, but in addition to being very fast, Draco simply didn't want to hear it, so nothing more was registered.

For a moment, Draco just decided he didn't want to bother with the arguing and he just stared at the ceiling of the dark room while Granger went into book mode. His quiet time, however, was broken when the book in his lap was snatched away from him, and with that his little resolve snapped.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing, Granger? That was my book!" His voice got loud as he shot up into a sitting position. The girl didn't look up from her book, nor did she seem to register his complaints at all. Draco's mouth dropped, ready for another shout, but before he could do so Granger's head whipped up, accompanied by a deadly stare.

"If you think that getting us into an argument is going to make this situation any better, I beg you not to think that. The only possible way we're going to get out of here is to cooperate-"

"Cooperating typically means not snatching books out of people's laps!" Draco interrupted.

"It's _**my**_ book Malfoy, and I'll snatch it out of whatever lap I feel like!"

"Didn't your mummy teach you any manners? _**Share**_. And no grabbing either!"

"Didn't your mum ever teach you that it's polite to ask to borrow someone else's possessions, instead of just taking them?"

Malfoy started to open his mouth in protest, but Hermione cut him off before he even started.

"Here we are! '_The patronus is casted with a focus around the feeling of happiness, which makes it very difficult to perform in the face of-'"_

"I know what it says Granger! I was able to read it before you snatched it out of my hands! If you would have waited half a second, I could have told you what it said! We could be practicing the spell by now!"

"Fine," snapped Hermione, "if you've already read it, why don't you tell me what it said."

"We need to think of an incredibly happy thought."

"Hard to think of happy thoughts when I'm stuck here with you Malfoy," muttered Granger under her breath.

But Draco caught the rude remark, and sneered at her. "Listen Granger, I don't want to be here as much as you do, possibly even more! But if we want to get out of this blasted room one of us has to learn to cast a bloody patronus, and to do that we have to be happy, and to be happy, we have to cooperate with each other."

"Fine. Let me finish reading the description, and then we can start practicing."

"Fine."

"Fine."

And with that, the obnoxious bushy haired girl sat down and resumed reading where she left off.


	8. A Place to Sleep

Both Hermione and Draco had been trying to produce a patronus for more than an hour, and neither of them had gotten any farther than a tiny plume of sliver smoke.

"We've been at it for awhile now Draco," Hermione sighed wearily. "It's hopeless until we get some rest."

"No! I. Can. Do. This!" Malfoy replied through gritted teeth. "EXPECTO PATRONUM! EXPECTO PATRONUM! EXPECT- EXPE-"

Hermione saw the desperation in his eyes, as he tried to conjure the charm, but it was no use. Happy thoughts were slightly deprived from the two fifth year students at the moment, due to their precarious situation, and Hermione was quite sure that Draco was just exhausting himself at the moment. She yawned and stretched her arms up above her bushy-haired head, checking her watch. _No wonder we're both tired! According to the watch, we've been awake for more than a day! There hasn't been much improvement as far as mastering the patronus charm; maybe we just need some sleep._

Draco was still reciting the spell, but he was cut off by the sudden appearance of Hermione's arm on his, slowly guiding his wand arm down to its side.

"Draco, you need to stop; you've been at it for quite some time, and we both need to sleep."

"I don't need sleep. I can master this!" The blond sounded incredibly irritated as he spat back in response.

"Why are you so frustrated?"

"Because, I'm stuck in this tiny little room with _you_! Until one of us masters a patronus, it could be ages before anyone realizes that we're actually in here, let alone the fact that we still have no way of getting out!"

This,_ this is tiny? Wow. He must have been brought up in a really nice house. Probably huge as well, with servants, and food made by the finest chefs, and-_ Hermione cut herself off of her own thinking. _Am I jealous of Draco Malfoy? No, surly I can't be_. _But still, he should understand what small_ really_ means_. With that, Hermione grabbed Malfoy by the shoulder, and dragged him into the closet on the other side of the room.

"Granger! What are you doing? You're going to rip my arm out of its socket!"

"I'm showing you what tiny really means! Because not all of us were fortunate enough to live in a house where there are so many rooms that we can have three bedrooms! Take Harry for example, he lived in a cupboard under some stairs for ten years!"

Malfoy had no reply to this, and surprisingly allowed himself to be dragged into the closet. Hermione spun him around, and he watched her as she pulled the doors shut.

It was pitch black in the closet, and Hermione jumped at the sound of a loud thud. "Granger?" Came Malfoy's voice from somewhere below her, who apparently had fallen.

"Yes? What is it Malfoy?"

"Either this is a much bigger closet than I thought, or your definition of tiny is slightly skewed."

"What are you talking about now?" Irritated, she stretched out her hands, trying to find the wall that she knew was there a moment before. Instead, her shin hit something solid.

"OW! Oh this is ridiculous! LUMOS!" What Hermione saw took her completely by surprise, and she nearly dropped her wand to the carpeted floor below.

For Hermione, there was no mistaking the room they were in now. The soft shade of lavender was painted on the walls, that were completely lined with bookshelves on one side, a bed and door leading to a hallway on another, a desk under two windows on the third wall, and her closet behind her on the fourth wall.

They had somehow managed to get inside her bedroom.

"Damn Granger," Draco huffed as he drew up from the floor, "what did you do this time?"

"I'm not sure!" But the tone in Hermione's voice was far from concerned. In fact, she was delighted, and she displayed her emotions by leaping onto the bed with the goofiest grin on her face.

"I'm guessing this is your room then," he drawled as he strode over to the bedside. "It's –" his eyes scanned the room, "nice."

"Don't pretend you like it if you really don't," said Hermione crossly from the bed, "it will only make it worse."

"Hmm," was the only reply from Draco as he sunk down in her desk chair. He seemed interested in something in her room, but Hermione couldn't tell exactly what.

"Well this is interesting," Hermione reflected, "somehow, we managed to get inside a different room, _**my**_ room, when we went into the closet. But I'm sure I opened it before, and surly I would have noticed if there was a different room that you could access from it."

"Getting out of this room is going to be trickier than I thought. It's like we're in a room, within a room. And who knows? We could keep going farther in!"

Draco Malfoy hadn't signaled in anyway that he was paying attention to Hermione. In fact, he seemed to be sleeping.

"Typical Malfoy," muttered Hermione.

Malfoy's eyes opened lazily, and he said, "Pretending to sleep, or actually sleeping, whichever I prefer, is an excellent solution for blocking out the sound of your voice."

"Oh good, you're awake," said Hermione sarcastically. "Well, since we're here, we had better get some real sleep; I checked my watch earlier, and I think that we've been up for over twenty four hours, although it's seemed far less than that to us."

"Since we're here?" Draco quoted Hermione, "How is this room any better than the first Granger?"

"Well if you haven't noticed, there's a nice bed here."

"Trying to talk me into having sex? Tisk, tisk Granger, I never took you for a slut."

Hermione's face turned tomato red, "I am not asking you to have sex Draco Malfoy!" she retorted with a great force behind her voice. "I am simply saying that this bed **is** big enough for two, and if you don't want to sleep on that chair, then I'd be perfectly fine moving over so you can have room!"

_That boy! After all this, he's cracking sex jokes? I thought he was opening up to his true, gentle-self; but I guess I was wrong. He's still the same, stuck-up, inconsiderate wizard._

"Sure, Granger, sure," Malfoy responded with a smirk. "Whatever you say!"

"Fine! If you don't want to sleep on the bed, feel free to sleep in the chair, or better, the floor! I'm sure you'll be comfy."

With that, Hermione got under the bed covers, and whispered "Nox," as Draco stared at her with amusement dancing lightly in his gray eyes.


	9. Umbridge

Harry and Ron ate their dinners in record time. And Ron hated eating fast. You never got to enjoy the food, and Ron always looked forward to a good meal. But tonight they had detention. McGonagall had said- _"Dinner then strait to my office," _and then she said -_"No Mr. Weasley". _What was that about?

"What do you think she meant by that?" Ron asked Harry as the passed the Slytherin table on their way to the Great Hall doors.

"Well, that depends. Who is she and what did she say?" Harry pushed his glasses up his nose as one Slytherin third year stuck out his leg, cause the black haired Gryffindor to stumble. The third year won a round of laughter from his friends.

If it weren't for this being the Great Hall Ron would have had a few choice words for that Slytherin brat, but they were not suitable for teacher's ears.

"McGonagall. She said 'No Mr. Weasley' just before she walked away," Ron pushed open a door and held it as Harry skirted out of the Great Hall. With a bang the oak door shut behind Ron, effectively separating the noise of students from the silence of the halls.

"I think she expected you to ask something, or maybe she is expecting you to. But who knows? It's McGonagall. For all we know it could have been some strange spell made to transfigure your liver into a dancing peppershaker and all we heard was 'No Mr. Weasley,'" Harry grinned over at Ron who was trying to imagine his liver in such a state.

"If that were true, I think I would ask her to also transfigure your lung into a self-playing trumpet, so my liver would have some music for its moves," Ron said thoughtfully. Both boys proceeded to fall into an uncontrollable laughter. It was possible to stop, they did it quite often, but once they looked at each other they would be compelled to laugh once again, as if they were possessed.

Because of the emptiness of the corridors their whole walk to McGonagall's office was field with laughter echoing throughout ever corner of the castle. And though they enjoyed hearing there own obvious joy despite probably an all night detention, some teachers, like Snape, did not appreciate happiness within the walls of Hogwarts.

Ron and Harry turned a corner to run into one of these teachers.

"Bloody Hell!" Ron yelled as he jumped from the surprise of almost running into a pink blob.

"Mr. Weasley, that kind of language is inexcusable within Hogwarts. That will be 10 points from Gryffindor," Dolores Jane Umbridge said with a smile stretching from one ear to the other.

"You can't do that!" Harry started, hatred burning in his green eyes. Ron has only seen his best friend this angry once or twice throughout their friendship, both times at Snape. But Ron knew that Harry saved his hatred for those who really deserved it; Umbridge, who was on the top of that hate list. Well, after He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, but he was a special case.

"Oh, but you will find Mr. Potter that I can and I will. And another 10 points from Gryffindor, for judging a teacher's decision. And Mr. Potter, let us think what we are going to say before this becomes another detention, shall we? I don't think we need more…ah, scars between our relationship," Harry was shaking with rage, but he clamped his mouth tight and tightened his fist so his knuckles turned white.

_Thank Merlin's Beard, _Ron thought with relief. For a minute there he was afraid Harry would receive detention, again. And normally Ron wouldn't be too concerned about his friend getting a detention, he had to face that it happened quite often. But there was something about those detentions Harry received with Umbridge that felt off to Ron. He just couldn't figure out the reason behind it though.

"There, now that is much better. See how nice it is when we can all just get along?" Umbridge gave a girlish giggle of joy and very sweetly asked, "Now, I just wanted to know where you two were off to at this time. You ate dinner quite hurriedly, and the Gryffindor common room is on the 7th floor. It would have been much faster if you took the stairs back there, but you passed them instead. So I was just curious where you were heading," Umbridge tipped her fat head to one side, as a little girl would when asking a question. Ron felt ready to puke.

"We got detention." Harry answered shortly.

"Oh? And, may I ask, who gave you detention?" Umbridge said with her most sugar coated voice.

"Professor McGonagall." Harry answered with venom.

"And, may I ask, why?"

"We were late for class."

Umbridge look absolutely delighted, "Is that so? Well, if you two don't mind, I would love to join you. I too have to visit Professor McGonagall and would love to accompany the both of you," and with that she started walking behind them, trailing them all the way to McGonagall's office.

When they arrived Harry knocked tentatively on the door. Ron understood his hesitation. Bringing Umbridge along…he wouldn't be surprised if they got another detention.

"Come in," McGonagall called from the other side. The two fifth years walked in ahead of Umbridge, Ron with a little more then pure terror in his heart. At first he was looking forward to this detention. Yeah, imagine that.

But now that Umbridge was involved, and after what she done to Harry, even among the bravest of people some fear was allowed. But Ron would not show it, because he, after all, was a Gryffindor.

"Ah boys, glad you didn't dawdle. Let us be off, we have got a long night ahead of us. And if I even see one attempt to sleep on the job you both will be helping Professor Sprout trim the Devil's Snare," McGonagall stood promptly and began to walk right out the way the trio entered.

Until it happened. She coughed. A sickly sweet little thing, just enough to catch the attention of someone, but not enough to cause concern. Something like a cute little girl would do if she wanted to ask a candy seller for a licorice wand. But this was worse. Because it was Umbridge's cough.

"Pardon me, Minerva, but I have some business with you first, if you don't mind of course," Umbridge smiled up at McGonagall with expectation in her eyes. Expectations for a yes.

However, this being Professor McGonagall, and her being Dolores Jane Umbridge, what were the chances of that happening? Ron already got a figure of 0.

"Yes, in fact Dolores, I do mind. As you can see I am a little busy at the moment. These two have a detention to serve with me and I do not plan on postponing it for a chat," McGonagall practically spat it out.

Ron was highly amused at the moment. He had been excited to see Umbridge take on McGonagall ever since their first class. And here he was with the best seats in Hogwarts. A con though, it made him right in the line of fire.

"Actually that is what I wished to talk to you about. You see you have given these two a detention. But as a teacher here for the Ministry, I must be informed of when, why, and what you shall be doing," Umbridge said everything real slowly, as if Minerva were a kindergarten student.

"And, may I ask, why?" Ron backed away an inch or two. He saw Harry do the same. It wasn't their fault; McGonagall was not a force to be reckoned with.

"It is all to help make the appropriate changes to the Hogwarts in a way that will help the students and teachers alike. So you see, if I were to know these things, I could be the judge of as to weather the punishment for the crime is too harsh," Harry made a loud noise of disbelief. Ron would normally have smacked him for such a thing, but now he couldn't bring himself to do it. Really, after what she did to Harry night after night, what wasn't too harsh?

"Very well, Dolores. These two were 45 minutes late to my class. Therefore we are going to the 7th floor where we shall be cleaning the whole corridor without magic. I shall merely be a supervisor," McGonagall said it very short, each word cut off to make it faster.

"But I thought-" Ron started. And then Harry punched him in the shoulder. Ron had to think about it for a second before he remembered they weren't suppose to tell anyone. Including Umbridge.

_Especially Umbridge, _Ron made a mental note to watch his mouth more carefully. But now it is was to late, his tongue had slipped and the witch in the pink cardigan certainly did not miss it.

"You thought what Mr. Weasley?" Umbridge smiled up at him, like a toad watching her fly. It was unnerving.

"I-I…I thought we only had to clean the bathrooms. The whole corridor is a bit much without magic," Ron ended lamely. He kept his eyes on his shoes and refused to look back into the black pits Umbridge used for seeing. They were about as effective as Dementors in sucking happiness.

"Yes, you are quite right. Minerva, I request that these two do only the rooms in the corridor, excluding the Gryffindor common room. But not the halls. After all, tomorrow is a school day. We can't have them working all night." Umbridge said all this as if she were helping the boys take down a mighty enemy. Ron held back the urge to punch her. He could only imagine what Harry wanted to do right now.

"Very well. Then we shall take our leave now, _Professor Umbridge,_" McGonagall sounded like an angry tabby.

The walk up to the 7th floor corridor was a silent one. Not even Peeves came to visit. Ron thought the anger crashing out of McGonagall was enough for even him to sense.

"THAT MISERABLE DOG OF THE MINISTRY!" McGonagall yelled as soon as they stopped in front of the Room of Requirement. Ron and Harry pressed themselves against the farthest wall. McGonagall yelling, that was not McGonagall's thing. She was supposed to stare deep into your soul and make you cause your own guilt. That

she was good at. Yelling? That was horrifying.

"You two had better not repeat that to her," McGonagall quickly told the boys once she regained her composure.

"Professor, you know we would never rat you out to her!" Harry said quickly. He almost sounded offended. Ron could have sworn, but maybe it was just the flickering torchlight, McGonagall almost smiled.

"Yes, well, the school will be much better once she is gone. I have never found myself hoping that the said curse on the Defense Against the Dark Arts position would work," McGonagall said quietly.

Ron and Harry and McGonagall approached the wall. Ron was baffled at what to do next. Their real mission was to get Hermione out of the Room of Requirement, but how?

"Could we try asking for her?" Ron suggested after five minutes of silence.

"Honestly Mr. Weasley, I know you have problems remembering transfiguration spells and potion ingredients, but I'm sure even Mr. Potter remembers what Professor Snape said when you asked the exact same thing yesterday," McGonagall scoffed, eyes never leaving the wall.

Ron looked at Harry baffled. What did Snape say?

"He said that it wouldn't work because of something or another," Harry shrugged and resumed his staring contest with the stone wall as well.

_At least I tried to think of something, _Ron thought to himself before, too, continuing his stare down of the wall.

Five more minutes passed, then ten. No one said anything. No one moved. If someone were to pass by they would think the three Gryffindors were placed under a spell. But no one passed, though it was not yet after curfew for the third years.

_Maybe if we just break the wall with a spell-_Ron started thinking before some loud, dreamy, insane voice broke into his mind.

"Minerva! What are you doing? I was just reading the cards and they said that great danger awaits those who stand for too long! How long have you been standing? Quickly now, quickly, you must move, lest death arrive here soon!" Trelawney was practically sprinting down the hallways; her beads and shawls clicking together like an offbeat drum.

Ronald let out the most exasperated sigh he could manage without attracting negative attention from the Professors. Harry took off his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose before rolling his green eyes.

"Sybill, this really isn't the best time for your predictions," McGonagall refused to look away from the wall.

It was as if she was trying to win the control of a dog, Ron thought. His Dad always said Muggles would stare into the eyes of dogs to show dominance. Ron thought that was silly when you could just cast a spell to make the animal understand. Now that he understood Muggles more he was still a little skeptical about the practice, but Muggles will be Muggles.

"But, Minerva, the cards don't lie! I flipped three, and each one pointed to death fro those who stay in one place for too long!" Sybill was certainly more panicked then usual. However, this did not concern Ron in the slightest.

"Well then Sybill, the real problem is the two students stuck inside this confounded Room of Requirement!" McGonagall rubbed her temple slowly, as if messaging away a headache. Ron didn't doubt she was.

"Students? Trapped inside the Room? Well why didn't you say so? I can find them and communicate with them through my crystal ball! I shall save them in a jiffy, don't even worry about it anymore!" And Professor Trelawney walked away, muttering some nonsense about how the tea leaves forewarned of something drastic.

Ron kicked the wall again. This was getting them nowhere!

"Mr. Weasley I understand, but I ask you to refrain from kicking our castle's walls," McGonagall said it with something like sympathy in her voice.

"Professor, can't we just blow it up? All we have to do is make an opening!" Ron was practically on his knees begging. The ginger released he must have looked ridiculous, but that was okay. It was Hermione on the line after all.

"Can your memory reach back as far as to the last thing I said to you yesterday?" McGonagall still had not removed her eyes from that wall. Ron didn't get how she wasn't itching from holding still too long.

"You said 'No, Mr. Weasley,'" Ron said instantly. After all it has been bugging him ever since she said it.

"This is what I meant no too, Mr. Weasley," the professor took of her emerald witch's hat and pulled a loose piece of hair to the top of her head before replacing the hat. Ron was having doubts as to weather she was blinking or not.

_It must be from becoming a cat Animagus, _Ron concluded with the only explanation he could find. It would do for now.

"So what do we do now, Professor?" Harry asked from the ground where he had taken a seat a little after Trelawney arrived.

"I told you this would be a long night, Mr. Potter. We think, and we work on ideas. Two things are most important right now. First: get the students out. Yes even Mr. Malfoy," McGonagall said pointedly as both Gryffindor students opened their mouths. Still she did not turn round, "And second: do not let the Ministry find out. If they discover that two students got trapped inside and enchanted room with no food or water or means of communication we shall never hear the end of it. Inquires will be made and Lucius Malfoy shall surly use his gold to get the advantage over us," McGonagall, finally, turned and looked at the students.

Ron suddenly felt much more relaxed. He just realized that he was staring at McGonagall staring at the wall so intently that he must have not moved for the same amount of time as she. The thought made him want to go jogging, or swimming, or something that involved some type of activity.

"So, all night, we are going to brainstorm?" Harry asked, mouth slightly agape at the idea.

"Very good Mr. Potter. If you want to get to bed earlier, I suggest you come up with a few ideas short of destroying the entire building. It wouldn't work anyway. That room is enchanted, our spells will be useless on the place they were sent to. If only we could know if they got my patronus," McGonagall ended talking to herself and turning back to the wall.

"But Professor, we could be here till 4 in the morning!" Ron complained. He cared about Hermione for sure, and he wanted to save her more than anything. But there was no way that lacking sleep was going to help him come up with good ideas. He was having trouble enough while wide-awake.

"If you'd stop talking and start thinking we could be done much sooner!" McGonagall ended the conversation like that, and Ron fell into deep thought.

But at the back of his mind he still had something else pulling at him.

_I wonder what Hermione is thinking right now. I bet she already knows a way out, she just doesn't know how to make it work. _And then the strangest thought came to mind, _has she kissed Malfoy! Maybe they are purposefully stuck inside together! _

Ron shook his head, red locks of hair landing in his sight of vision. Stupid ideas, that's all they were, stupid ideas.


	10. Bath Time!

After a good night's sleep on the edge (the very, very edge) of Granger's bed, Draco felt quite refreshed. He still felt silly about last night's little banter, but he couldn't help but tease the girl. She _had _set herself up for it. He wondered if she would be offended this morning too. He hadn't really meant to be mean. She was best friends with Weasley and Potter, right? Draco had thought she would be used to the suggestive jokes by now.

Sitting up in the bed, he stretched like a cat with his arms up, and back arched. He found it a rather relaxing and energizing thing. His back popped loudly (and a bit painfully) as his arms fell backwards. He lazily looked around. Seeing nothing but white and lavender and bookshelves, Draco came back to his current reality. Shaking his head to clear his morning sleepiness, he wondered where Granger was.

He looked over his shoulder to see that Granger was still sound asleep. Coming to the conclusion that waking her up would not help his case (in case she was still angry, which was quite probable), Draco took in his surroundings.

The room was mainly themed in a pale lavender color, with a floor-to-ceiling bookshelf (overflowing, of course) on one wall. There were 2 doors, which one of them they came through. A desk underneath two windows sat opposite the bed. The room was pleasant enough, with rather little decoration. The desk and (rather remarkable) amount of books made the room look half office, half bedroom.

Draco quietly got up from the bed and inched toward the windows. He had no idea where she lived. How would he know? It's not like _he _ever thought about those things. Psh. No, he really didn't!

The carpet below his feet was soft and cushy. Just a small fact that made his morning a little more enjoyable as he approached the windows. They were standard sized, with white paneling that made him feel like he was in the countryside. He looked out.

Shock!

Draco couldn't believe his eyes. For a second, he held his hand up to the window. It wasn't an illusion; he could feel the cool misty glass beneath his fingertips. Something flashed in his mind, and he was shaking Hermione awake.

"Hermione! Hermione, Hermione, Hermione! Come, come quick!"

She got up slowly, in a very reluctant way. That was not an unfamiliar feeling to Draco, and if it wasn't for the circumstances he might have sympathized with her.

But it was too slow. Patience snapping, he grabbed her by the hand and unceremoniously yanked her out of bed, dragging her to the window.

"Wha… Draco… What? What's wrong?"

"Look! Look, look, look! It's Hogwarts, it's Hogwarts! See, that's the Slytherin common room, and there's… And see! There's the Great Hall, in that window! Can't you see it?" He looked anxiously at her. She was standing there with messy clothes, messy hair, and a very just-woken-up appearance. But her eyes told Draco she saw it too.

She stared a moment longer, then began banging on the window. Shucks, why hadn't he thought of that?

"Harry! Harry, hey! Ron! Hey! It's me! Guys, look! Here!"

_Wait, what?_ There was no Potters or Weasleys. He looked through the window in front of Hermione. _Nope, still the Great Hall. And it's empty. What is she seeing?_

"Um, Hermione…" Draco trailed off, breaking his eye contact with the windows to look at her. She seemed strained and frustrated, _probably because her friends aren't responding. At least, they probably aren't, seeing as they aren't there at all. But are they?_ Draco was confused. Did she see something else? _Darned room, making everything complicated._

Hermione seemed confused too. He could almost see all the gears in her head cranking.

_Let her think, _Draco thought to himself. _She'll come up with some answers, I'm sure. _

He looked back at the Slytherin Common Room. He had never really liked the common room, mainly because it was in the dungeons. Dungeons were cold and dark and musty. He liked to be free and open and light. Pretty contradictory. But most Slytherins, he had noticed, liked it. He wasn't sure why. Something to do with Slytherins and their evil demeanor, certainly.

It was just the same as always. Dark, with a mismatched lanterns hanging here and there, with the chairs and tables of dark wood, scratched and stained. The two hallways, one leading to the girls' dorms, the other to the boys'. No windows. Small fires placed around the walls of the octagonal room. Plenty of room to go lurk in a corner and plan your enemies' doom. No, Draco did not like the Slytherin Common Room. It always felt like you were being forced apart from the others. Forced to become a stereotypical Slytherin. Dark, dangerous, dependent on nobody, dependent on nothing but yourself. Blech.

Finding himself rather disgusted with the window, he scooted a tiny bit towards Hermione. She was still deep in thought. Her fingers tapped on the glass, like she was still unconsciously calling for help.

The Great Hall was much more appealing. Bright with the house banners, the bewitched ceiling a bright sunny blue. Weird weather for the time of year, but people would enjoy it while it lasted. That explained the lack of people. Or it might have just been classes. Draco wondered what time it was there. Where would he be right now, if he weren't trapped in this room-thing with Hermione?

As if on cue, Hermione's head snapped up and she snapped her fingers. _Ooh, idea._ Surprisingly enough.

"What do you see?" She asked. _Good morning to you too. At least I'm not getting yelled at._

"This window," point to the left, "shows the Slytherin Common Room. This window," point to the right, "is the Great Hall." He looked at her. "What do you see?"

Her eyebrows rose. "That window," left. "Is outside of the castle, down by the lake. That window," right. "It's the Gryffindor Common Room. Why do you see something different?"

"Good, we're thinking along the same lines. Now if only…" The Slytherin Common Room had faded to grey.

"Now if only what? We had something to tell us what was going on? Or someone?" She paused. Draco knew what was coming. "If only I had the library." _Never would have guessed you'd ask for that, Miss Granger._ "I could look something up about the Room of Requirements, and see if there is something about windows. I mean, it makes sense that you're not going to see the walls around the room out of windows. That would be boring."

_Boring? Sure. It's extremely boring when you're in a room that transfigures itself and everything in it. _

Oh God, oh God. Transfiguring?

_If I turn into a boat… Sweet Merlin, please don't turn me into a boat. Or a sponge. Or anything. Please. I like this version of Draco Malfoy very much, and I don't think I'll be changing my mind about that fact anytime soon. _

"Rowena Ravenclaw would certainly come up with something more interesting than that. Oh, I know I read about the Room for D.A., I should have paid more attention. But I can't remember anything about windows. Or having traveling doors, for that matter. Well, other than the door that you come in and out of, that's obvious. But the rest of this is so weird! Windows that show inside the school? I've never heard of anything like it. And they can't see us, I think. Otherwise someone would see us. And I've never seen windows floating in midair out by the lake, and the ones in the common room obviously wouldn't be looking into my room…" Draco didn't want to hear the rest. He had more important things on his mind.

Nothing made sense! Stupid room. Hermione was not the only one who had read up on the room. He wasn't stupid, even though he wasn't miss know-it-all Granger. He wasn't going to let his father send him into some trick room that would kill him or imperious him or who knows what. No, he was a practical Malfoy.

The problem was, Hermione didn't remember because she didn't pay enough attention to it at the time, she didn't remember because there were no window parts. He had scrutinized those _Rowena Ravenclaw and Her Triumphs_ and _What to Expect When Your Mind's Wishes Take Over_ books up and down and in between the pages and invisible ink and everything possible within the rules of Madam Pince's and his magical abilities. This was beyond anything he had ever learned about the room. Expected of the room. Beyond his imagination, special room or no special room.

There was a moment of degradedness that struck Draco. No, he would never, ever come up with something crazy like this. Absolutely beyond his mental capabilities. He'd be put in Azkaban for being crazy and stressed and most likely a threat to the common wizard.

Was this part of Rowena Ravenclaw's mind? Her ideas? She was a founder of Hogwarts. But did that make someone's mind so twisted in such a strange way? Not evil, but intensely creative in a bad way. No, that would be highly unlikely. She probably would have been treated the same as crazy-stress-genius Draco: granted with a free one-way forever-long holiday to Azkaban.

Maybe the room had a mind of it's own now, with the amount of magic that not only made it live, but was stashed in it's ever-transforming walls. If he could make a button turn into a slug, he figured a room with a brain wasn't too far out there.

_Enough with that, _Draco's head voice scolded him. _You've got enough on your hands without confusing yourself more than you have since the Slytherin Common Room went away. _No arguing with that. He had a mighty fine headache.

And so Draco glared helplessly back at the grey window that had now become the glimmering library of Hogwarts, Madam Pince and biting creature books and all.


End file.
